Llanrwst, Denbighshire

After 1834

Llanrwst Poor Law Union was formed on 26th April, 1837. Its operation was overseen by an elected Board of Guardians, 20 in number, representing its 17 constituent parishes as listed below (figures in brackets indicate numbers of Guardians if more than one):

The population falling within the Union at the 1831 census had been 11,312 with parishes ranging in size from Gwernbowel (population 73) to Llanrwst itself (3,225). The average annual poor-rate expenditure for the period 1834-36 had been £5,175 or 9s.2d. per head of the population.

Llanrwst Union workhouse was erected at a site on Station Road just to the north of Llanrwst in around 1850. The workhouse location and layout are shoown on the map below.

Llanrwst site, 1915.

The workhouse design followed the popular cruciform or "square" layout with separate accommodation wings for the different classes of inmate (male/female, infirm/able-bodied etc.) radiating from a central hub.

After 1930, the former Llanrwst workhouse became a Public Assistance Institution. The buildings are believed to have been demolished in the 1960s.